Jameela Alia Jamil (born 25 February 1986)[2] is a British television presenter, radio presenter, model and actress. She has appeared on various Channel 4 programmes and has been a presenter of T4 from 2009 until 2012 when T4 ended. She is a former host of The Official Chart and was co-host of The Official Chart Update, alongside Scott Mills on BBC Radio 1 until January 2015.[3] Since 2016, she has appeared as Tahani Al-Jamil in the American television series The Good Place.[4]

Contents

1Biography

2Career

2.1Magazines

2.2Television

2.2.1Television filmography

2.3Radio

3Charity

4References

5Further reading

6External links

Biography[edit]

Jamil was born to an Indian father and a Pakistani mother on 25 February 1986.[5] She was born with congenital hearing loss and labyrinthitis, for which she had to have several operations to correct. She states that she has "70% audibility in [her] left ear and 50% in [her] right ear" as of 2015.[6] After accusations that she was a 'bad Muslim' in 2018 she went on record to state that she is not a Muslim and follows no religion.[7] At school, Jamil says she was "bookish and shy".[8] Her interests include art and biology.[9] At the age of 17, Jamil was struck by a car after being chased by a bee, breaking several bones and damaging her spine. She was told that she might never walk again, but after steroid treatment and physiotherapy she slowly recovered, using a Zimmer frame to start walking.[9][10]

Jamil taught English to foreign students at the Callan School of English, Oxford Street, London;[10] she also worked as a model, photographer, and as a fashion scout for Premier Model Management Limited.[11][9][12]

In 2012, she began radio hosting.[13] In June 2012, Jamil collaborated with Very.co.uk to debut her first fashion collection.[14] Later in 2015, Jamil launched Why Not People?, an events and membership company dedicated to hosting live entertainment events accessible to disabled people.[15]

In March 2018, Jamil launched an Instagram account called I Weigh,[16] inspired by a photo that she came across online of Kourtney, Khloé and Kim Kardashian with their half-sisters Kendall and Kylie Jenner, detailing each woman's weight.[17] Jamil describes I Weigh as "a movement... for us to feel valuable and see how amazing we are, and look past the flesh on our bones".[18] The account welcomes submissions of followers' non-edited or airbrushed selfies using the hashtag #iweigh, with text describing the things that they feel grateful for or proud of.[18][17]

Jamil has been in a relationship with musician James Blake since 2015.[19]

Career[edit]

Magazines[edit]

Jamil was photographed for a Vogue feature on "British Editorial Class of 2010" in January of that year, by David Bailey. From 2011 to 2014 she wrote a column for Company, the women's monthly magazine.[20][21] She made her first American magazine cover on the February 2018 edition of The Cut.[22]

Television[edit]

She appeared on the E4 show Music Zone towards the end of 2008. She began presenting T4 in 2009.[23][20] In January 2009, Alexa Chung left the morning TV show Freshly Squeezed; Jamil succeeded Chung as co-host, alongside Nick Grimshaw.[11][23][24][25]

Jamil presented "The Closet", an online fashion advice show on the social networking site Bebo.[20][24][26] Created and produced by Twenty Twenty Television, it formed part of the 'Bebo Originals' commission programme.[26] In January 2012, Jamil replaced June Sarpong as the new host of Playing It Straight.[27]

Since September 2016, Jamil has been a regular cast member of the NBC fantasy sitcom The Good Place, where she plays Tahani Al-Jamil.[28] This is Jamil's first acting role.[29][30] Jamil recalls not knowing much of what the show was about before auditioning.[30]

Television filmography[edit]

Year

Title

Role

Notes

2009 – 2012

Freshly Squeezed

Herself

Lead host

2012

Playing It Straight

Herself

Host

2016 – present

The Good Place

Tahani Al-Jamil

Lead role: 26 episodes

Radio[edit]

Year

Title

Role

Notes

2013 – 2015

The Official Chart

Host

BBC Radio 1

Charity[edit]

Jamil appeared on C4 "Orange Rockcorps 2009", volunteering for four hours to help create a concert to fund local community projects.[31] She has supported the Cultural Learning Alliance, which promotes access to culture for children and young people,[32] and Vinspired National Awards for people aged 16–25 who have contributed to their communities through volunteering.[33][34] Jamil designed her own version of SpongeBob SquarePants, for a Childline charity auction.[35]

Jamil also said that she would wear a chicken costume for the same number of days equal to the number of thousands of pounds she raises for Comic Relief. She was sponsored approximately £16,000 so vowed to wear the costume for 16 consecutive days.[36]